ChrisExplaining software development methods by flying to Mars
OptionalWaterfall method: talk about building a rocket for 5 years, build the rocket, rocket needs to be totally redesigned because we forgot to put a place for people to go - massive change reqeust, build new version. Project Delay: 27 years
Agile Method: a rocket is not software - do not use Agile
Kanban - kanban is agile
Scrum - scrum . . is also Agile. What are you doing, go back and do the waterfall one
So does Agile even have a definition, or is it just an umbrella for every management method?
Agile methodology is a defined framework for software development success. It helps teams adapt and solve specific needs at a given time and prioritizes accelerated time to market and the value of user insights. Agile is based upon a set of four values and twelve principles laid out in the Manifesto for Agile Software development.
See, the thing with that is it’s just really aspirational. Anything could be Agile if you do it in the right spirit, if the manifesto is the whole thing.
Edit: I suppose what I should have asked is: “Is Agile really a system, or just a philosophy?”
It’s both. The word “Agile” is used for either depending in context.
To that end, it’s several systems depending on if it’s used for straight-software development in a department, or manufacturing with technological components, or an entire enterprise using Agile concepts like SAFe. Each one could be slightly different, and each one is some variation on the philosophy.
What it differs from is a phase-gate approach typified by project management. The big difference is project management has been around forever, Agile just over twenty years. So the former is what everybody knows by default, the latter sounding very “woo woo” to a lot of people.